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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: pop · race · net · wake · bat · calf · staff · bound

  1. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. calf — a young animal
  2. staff — employees
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. race — a contest
  5. bound — certain
  6. race — the arms race
  7. net — after costs
  8. pop — to visit
  9. bat — the animal
  10. net — for catching
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. wake — a trail
  13. pop — music
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. bound — tied together
  18. net — in sport
  19. race — humankind
  20. staff — a stick
  21. staff — employees
  22. bound — obliged
  23. pop — soda
  24. bat — in an idiom

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com